Glossary Terms A - C

Abstract of Title : A chronological summary of all official records and recorded documents affecting the title to a parcel of real property.

Accomplice: 1. A partner in a crime. 2. A person who knowingly and voluntarily participates with another in a criminal activity.

Acknowledgment: 1. A statement of acceptance of responsibility. 2. The short declaration at the end of a legal paper showing that the paper was duly executed and acknowledged.

Acquit: To find a defendant not guilty in a criminal trial.

Action. In the legal sense, a formal complaint or a suit brought in court.

Additur: An increase by a judge in the amount of damages awarded by a jury.

Adjudication: Giving or pronouncing a judgment or decree. Also the judgment given.

Ad Litem: A Latin term meaning for the purposes of the lawsuit. For example, a guardian "ad litem" is a person appointed by the court to protect the interests of a minor or legally incompetent person in a lawsuit.

Administrative Agency. Governmental body responsible for administering and implementing a particular legislation, such as laws governing traffic safety or workers' compensation. These agencies may have rulemaking power and judge-like authority to decide disputes.

Administrative Hearing. Proceeding before an administrative agency which consists of an argument, a trial, or both. Rules governing the proceeding, including rules of evidence, are generally less strict than in civil or criminal trials.

Administrator: Person appointed by a court to administer a deceased person's estate. The person may be male (in which case, he would be referred to as the "administrator") or female (in which case, she would be referred to as the "administratrix").

Admissible evidence: Evidence that can be legally and properly introduced in a civil or criminal trial.

Adversary Proceeding. Legal proceeding involving parties with opposing interests, with one party seeking legal relief and the other opposing it.

Affiant: A person who makes and signs an affidavit.

Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths. For example, in criminal cases, affidavits are often used by police officers seeking to convince courts to grant a warrant to make an arrest or a search. In civil cases, affidavits of witnesses are often used to support motions for summary judgment.

Agreement: Mutual assent between two or more parties; normally leads to a contract; may be verbal or written.

Aid and Abet: To actively, knowingly or intentionally assist another person in the commission or attempted commission of a crime.

Allegation. The claim made in a pleading by a party to an action setting out what he or she expects to prove.

Alternative Dispute Resolution: Settling a dispute without a full, formal trial. Methods include mediation, conciliation, arbitration, and settlement, among others.

Amicus Curiae. (Latin: "friend of the court.") Person or organization that files a legal brief with the court expressing its views on a case involving other parties because it has a strong interest in the subject matter of the action.

Appeal. Request to a superior or higher court to review and change the result in a case decided by an inferior or lower court or administrative agency.

Appearance Notice: A written notification to the plaintiff by an attorney stating that he or she is representing the defendant.

Appellate Court. A court having jurisdiction to hear an appeal and review the decisions of a lower or inferior court.

Arbitration: A form of alternative dispute resolution in which the parties bring their dispute to a neutral third party and agree to abide by his or her decision. In arbitration there is a hearing at which both parties have an opportunity to be heard.

Arbitrator: A person who conducts an arbitration.

Arraignment: A proceeding in which an individual who is accused of committing a crime is brought into court, told of the charges, and asked to plead guilty or not guilty. Sometimes called a preliminary hearing or initial appearance.

Arrest: To take into custody by legal authority.

Assault. A willful attempt or threat to harm another person, coupled with the present ability to inflict injury on that person, which causes apprehension in that person. Although the term "assault" is frequently used to describe the use of illegal force, the correct legal term for use of illegal force is "battery ."

Assumption of the Risk. When a person voluntarily and knowingly proceeds in the face of an obvious and known danger, she assumes the risk. A person found to have assumed the risk cannot make out the duty element of a negligence cause of action. The theory behind the rule is that a person who chooses to take a risk cannot later complain that she was injured by the risk that she chose to take. Therefore, she will not be permitted to seek money damages from those who might have otherwise been responsible.

Attorney-Client Privilege. Client's privilege to refuse to disclose and to prevent any other person from disclosing confidential communications between the client and his or her attorney.

Attorney-in-Fact: A private person (who is not necessarily a lawyer) authorized by another to act in his or her place, either for some particular purpose, as to do a specific act, or for the transaction of business in general, not of legal character. This authority is conferred by an instrument in writing, called a letter of attorney, or more commonly a power of attorney.

Attorney of Record: The principal attorney in a lawsuit, who signs all formal documents relating to the suit.

Bad faith: Intention to mislead or deceive; conscious refusal to fulfill some duty. Implies active ill will, as opposed to negligence. Bad faith is not bad judgment; it requires conscious wrongdoing.

Bail: Money or other security (such as a bail bond) provided to the court to temporarily allow a person's release from jail and assure their appearance in court. "Bail" and "bond" are often used interchangeably.

Bail Bond : An obligation signed by the accused to secure his or her presence at the trial. This obligation means that the accused may lose money by not properly appearing for the trial. Often referred to simply as bond.

Bailiff: Court officer responsible for keeping order in the court, custody of the jury, and custody of prisoners while in court.

Bankruptcy: Refers to statutes and judicial proceedings involving persons or businesses that cannot pay their debts and seek the assistance of the court in getting a fresh start. Under the protection of the bankruptcy court, debtors may be released from or "discharged" from their debts, perhaps by paying a portion of each debt. Bankruptcy judges preside over these proceedings. The person with the debts is called the debtor and the people or companies to whom the debtor owes money to are called creditors.

Bar Examination: A state examination taken by prospective lawyers in order to be admitted and licensed to practice law.

Battery : The unlawful use of force resulting in the injury of another. Battery always includes assault. See assault.

Bench: The seat occupied by the judge. More broadly, the court itself.

Bench Trial or Non-jury Trial: Trial before a judge and without a jury. In a bench trial, the judge decides questions of law and questions of fact.

Bench Warrant: An order issued by a judge for the arrest of a person.

Beneficiary: Someone named to receive property or benefits in a will. In a trust, a person who is to receive benefits from the trust.

Bequeath: To give a gift to someone through a will.

Bequests: Gifts made in a will.

Best Evidence: The most direct evidence possible, such as producing an original document to prove that the document exists and what it states. A copy of a document or testimony by a witness would be "secondary evidence." The best evidence rule prohibits the introduction of secondary evidence unless best evidence cannot be obtained, so long as the party seeking to introduce the secondary evidence is not at fault in making the best evidence incapable of being obtained.

Beyond a Reasonable Doubt: The standard in a criminal case requiring that the jury be satisfied to a moral certainty that every element of a crime has been proven by the prosecution. This standard of proof does not require that the state establish absolute certainty by eliminating all doubt, but it does require that the evidence be so conclusive that all reasonable doubts are removed from the mind of the ordinary person.

Bill of Particulars: A statement of the details of the charge made against the defendant.

Binding Authority: Law that controls the outcome of a case. For example, a decision on the same point of law by a higher court in the same state must be followed by a lower court in that state. See precedent.

Bind Over: To hold a person for trial on bond (bail) or in jail. If the judicial official conducting a hearing finds probable cause to believe the accused committed a crime, the official will bind over the accused, normally by setting bail for the accused's appearance at trial.

Booking: The process of photographing, fingerprinting, and recording identifying data of a suspect. This process follows the arrest.

Breach of Contract: Failure, without legal excuse, to perform all or some of the promises made in a contract.

Brief: Written document, usually prepared by an attorney, submitted to the court about a case, containing summaries of the facts of the case, relevant laws, and an argument showing how the laws support that party's position.

Burden of Proof or Standard of Proof: Degree of proof required in a specific kind of case to prevail. In the majority of civil cases, it is proof by a preponderance of the evidence.

Bystander: In products liability law, a person who neither buys nor uses a product, but who nevertheless is injured by the product and may have a cause of action.
 

Calendar: List of cases scheduled for hearing in court.

Capacity Defense: Broadly, describes a defendant's lack of some fundamental ability to be held accountable. For example, in Pennsylvania , persons under 7 years of age are presumed incapable of negligence.

Capital crime: A crime punishable by death.

Caption: The heading on a legal document listing the parties, the court, the case number, and related information.

Case Law: Law established by previous decisions of appellate courts, particularly the Supreme Court.

Casuality: A loss of property due to fire, storm shipwreck or other casualty, which is allowable as a deduction in computing taxable income.

Cause: A lawsuit, litigation, or action. Any question, civil or criminal, litigated or contested before a court of justice.

Causation: The act by which an effect is produced. See also "legal cause" and "proximate cause."

Cause of Action: Fact or facts that give someone the right to seek a remedy through the court because the facts of the case apply to a certain law sought to be enforced.

Caveat: A warning; a note of caution.

Certification: 1. Written attestation. 2. Authorized declaration verifying that an instrument is a true and correct copy of the original.

Certiorari: (Latin: "To be informed of.") Writ issued by a superior or higher court to a lower court requiring the lower court to produce a certified record of a case tried there so that the superior court can examine the lower court proceedings for errors. See record.

Challenge: An objection, such as when an attorney objects at a hearing to the seating of a particular person on a civil or criminal jury.

Challenge for Cause: Objection to the seating of a particular juror for a stated reason (usually bias or prejudice for or against one of the parties in the lawsuit). The judge has the discretion to deny the challenge. This differs from peremptory challenge.

Chambers: A judge's private office. A hearing in chambers takes place in the judge's office outside of the presence of the jury and the public.

Change of Venue: Moving a lawsuit or criminal trial to another place for trial.

Charge to the Jury: The judge's instructions to the jury concerning the law that applies to the facts of the case on trial.

Chief Judge: Presiding or Administrative Judge in a court.

Circumstantial Evidence: Evidence not based on actual personal knowledge or observation of the fact in dispute, but, rather, evidence of other personal knowledge or observation which allows a jury to infer the existence or nonexistence of the fact in dispute. An example of direct evidence of who was at fault for a car accident would be a witness who actually saw the accident. An example of circumstantial evidence in this case, would be a witness who drove by after the impact and saw the defendant's car in the wrong lane.

Citation: 1. A reference to a source of legal authority. 2. A direction to appear in court, as when a defendant is cited into court, rather than arrested.

Civil Actions: Noncriminal cases in which one private individual or business sues another to protect, enforce, or redress private or civil rights.

Civil Action: Action brought to enforce private rights. Generally, all actions except criminal actions.

Civil Law: Body of law concerned with private rights and remedies, as contrasted with criminal law. Compare with criminal law.

Civil Procedure: The rules and process by which a civil case is tried and appealed, including the preparations for trial, the rules of evidence and trial conduct, and the procedure for pursuing appeals.

Claim Petition: In cases where a worker is injured on the job, the injured employee files a claim petition to seek initial compensation. This occurs when there has been a Notice of Denial - no workers' compensation payments have been made or medical benefits have not been paid.

Class Action: A means by which one or more individuals are able to sue for themselves and as representatives of other people. A class action requires: an identifiable group of people with a well-defined interest in the facts and law of the suit; too many people in the group for it to be practical to bring them all before the court; and the individuals bringing suit are able to adequately represent the entire group.

Clear and Convincing Evidence: Standard of proof commonly used in civil lawsuits and in regulatory agency cases. It governs the amount of proof that must be offered in order for the plaintiff to win the case.

Clemency or Executive Clemency: Act of grace or mercy by the president or governor to ease the consequences of a criminal act, accusation, or conviction. It may take the form of commutation or pardon.

Closing Argument: The closing statement, by counsel, to the trier of facts after all parties have concluded their presentation of evidence.

Codicil (kod'i-sil): An amendment to a will.

Co- Defendant: A defendant joined together with one or more other defendants in the same case.

Collateral Source Rule: The rule ensures that compensation awarded to a plaintiff in a lawsuit will not be reduced if the plaintiff receives compensation for the same injury from another source, such as insurance. Under the rule, a defendant tort-feasor is unable to benefit from the fact that the plaintiff received money from another source, such as insurance, because of the defendant's tort.

Commit: To send a person to prison, asylum, or reformatory by a court order.

Common Law: Law deriving its authority from usage and customs or judgments of courts recognizing and enforcing such usages and customs. Generally, law made by judges rather than by legislatures.

Commutation: The reduction of a sentence, as from death to life imprisonment.

Comparative Negligence: Comparing the plaintiff's contributory negligence to the defendant's negligence. Pennsylvania 's Comparative Negligence statute states that when a plaintiff is guilty of contributory negligence and that negligence was not greater than the defendant's negligence, the plaintiff's damages will be diminished in proportion to his negligence in causing the accident.

Compensation: Something that makes up for a loss. In workers' compensation cases, it refers to payment to unemployed or injured workers or their dependents.

Complaint: In the legal sense, the document a plaintiff files with the court which contains allegations and damages sought. A complaint generally starts a lawsuit.

Complainant: The party who complains or sues; one who applies to the court for legal redress. Also called the plaintiff.

Compromise and Release: In workers' compensation cases, this occurs when a lump sum payment of money is paid by the insurance carrier to an injured worker to resolve the case. This lump sum is in lieu of the weekly compensation benefits the injured worker is receiving and may or may not include future medical benefits.

Conciliation: A form of alternative dispute resolution in which the parties bring their dispute to a neutral third party, who helps lower tensions, improve communications, and explore possible solutions. Conciliation is similar to mediation, but it may be less formal.

Concurrent Sentences: Sentences for more than one crime that are to be served at the same time, rather than one after the other. See also cumulative sentences.

Condemnation: The legal process by which the government takes private land for public use, paying the owners a fair price.

Consecutive Sentences: Successive sentences, one beginning at the expiration of another, imposed against a person convicted of two or more violations.

Conservatorship: Legal right given to a person to manage the property and financial affairs of a person deemed incapable of doing that for himself or herself. (See also guardianship. Conservators have somewhat less responsibility than guardians.)

Contempt of Court: Willful disobedience of a judge's command or of an official court order.

Continuance: Postponement of a legal proceeding to a later date.

Contract: A legally enforceable agreement between two or more competent parties made either orally or in writing.

Contingent Fee Agreement: An agreement between an attorney and his or her client whereby the attorney agrees to represent the client for a percentage of the amount recovered. This fee agreement is frequently used in personal injury actions.

Contributory Negligence: Broadly, carelessness on the plaintiff's part. More precisely, conduct which falls below the standard of care established by law for the protection of one's self against unreasonable risk of harm.

Conviction: A judgment of guilt against a criminal defendant.

Corpus Delicti: Body of the crime. The objective proof that a crime has been committed. It sometimes refers to the body of the victim of a homicide or to the charred shell of a burned house, but the term has a broader meaning. For the state to introduce a confession or to convict the accused, it must prove a corpus delicti, that is, the occurrence of a specific injury or loss and a criminal act as the source of that particular injury or loss.

Corroborating Evidence: Supplementary evidence that tends to strengthen or confirm the initial evidence.

Counsel: Legal adviser; a term used to refer to lawyers in a case.

Counterclaim: Claim brought by a defendant in a lawsuit against the plaintiff.

Court Administrator/Clerk of court: An officer appointed by the Court or elected to oversee the administrative, non-judicial activities of the court.

Court: Refers to a specific court, such as The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, or may also refer to a judge.

Court Costs: The expenses of prosecuting or defending a lawsuit, other than the attorneys' fees. An amount of money may be awarded to the successful party (and may be recoverable from the losing party) as reimbursement for court costs.

Court Reporter: The person who stenographically records and transcribes testimony during court proceedings or related proceedings such as depositions.

Criminal Law: Criminal law declares what conduct is criminal and prescribes punishment to be imposed for criminal conduct. The purpose of criminal law is to prevent harm to society.

Cross-Claim: Claim brought by a defendant in a lawsuit against a co-defendant in the lawsuit.

Cross-Examination: The questioning of a witness produced by the other side.

Cumulative Sentences: Sentences for two or more crimes to run consecutively, rather than concurrently.

Custody: Detaining of a person by lawful process or authority to assure his or her appearance to any hearing; the jailing or imprisonment of a person convicted of a crime.

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